ARMENIA RANKS 1ST IN WORLD FOR SHARE OF DIRECT FOREIGN INVESTMENTS IN GDP
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
April 11 2006
YEREVAN, April 11. /ARKA/. Armenia ranks 1st in the world for the
share of direct foreign investments in the country’s GDP, Director of
the research center “Economy and Values” Manuk Erginyan told reporters.
“According to the latest data, the share of DFI in the total amount
of the country’s GDP was 4.31%,” Erginyan pointed out during the
presentation “Role of Diaspora in Attracting Direct Foreign Investments
in Armenia”, held in Yerevan. According to him, China ranks 2nd in
this list – 3.78% of the GDP, then comes Israel – 3.52%, India –
0.71% and Philippines – 0.4% rank 4th and 5th respectively.
According to Erginyan, the Armenian Diaspora in this context should be
considered as an exclusive asset in the development of the National
economy. “Besides, the Diaspora is not only a source of private
transfers of the DFI, but also a source of political support, and a
means of propaganda of the Armenian culture in the West,” he said.
The Armenian Diaspora numbers about 6mln people in the world, while
Armenia’s population is about 3.2mln. The largest Armenian communities
are located in Russia, USA, France, Iran and Lebanon.
The research “Role of Diaspora in Attracting Direct Foreign Investments
in Armenia” was held by the research center “Economy and Values” with
the support of the Yerevan office of the Caucasus Research Resource
Center, which is one of “Eurasia Foundation” programs.